1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an automatic photography system, particularly to an automatic photography system that automatically performs photography when the expressions or poses of subjects satisfy predetermined photography criteria.
2. Description of the Related Art
There are known automatic photography systems. The systems are provided at certain spots within an attraction at theme parks and the like, and automatically perform photography when a ride passes or when human presence is detected. U.S. Patent Laid-Open No. 20010003189 discloses a type of automatic photography system. This type of system is provided at locations suitable for photography within an attraction, and performs photography of users automatically. The users may order prints, after confirming the contents of the photographed images on monitors or the like, at the exit of the attraction.
There are also known techniques for correcting photographs of people so that the people pictured therein are satisfied with the photographs. However, correction of photographs requires advanced techniques, and it is difficult to correct a photograph of a person with their eyes closed so that their eyes appear to be open, or to correct a photograph of a person who is not smiling so that they appear to be smiling. For this reason, Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2000-347277 discloses a method for automatically performing photography when predetermined photography criteria are satisfied. The criteria may be “eyes opened after being shut for approximately two seconds”, “line of sight drew a predetermined trajectory”, or the like. That the criteria are satisfied is determined by detecting changes in the eyes of a subject, such as when the subject blinks or changes the direction of their line of sight. When the photography criterion is “eyes opened after being shut for approximately two seconds”, judgments are made regarding this condition by calculating the area of the whites of the eyes, based on image data. This is because when a person blinks, their eyeballs are hidden by their eyelids, and the whites of their eyes become difficult to see from the exterior. When the photography criterion is “line of sight drew a predetermined trajectory”, judgments are made regarding this condition by determining the trajectory of the line of sight, by detecting vectors of lines normal to the irises of the eyes.
However, automatic photography systems, which are provided at main points in attractions, such as that disclosed in U.S. Patent Laid-Open No. 20010003189, automatically perform photography when subjects arrive at predetermined locations. As the photography is performed regardless of the expression or pose of the subjects, there are cases in which people are photographed when they are not ready to be photographed, that is, in states undesirable for photography.
In the photography method disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2000-347277, characteristic elements such as the colors, the shapes, and the relative positions of the eyes are employed in an empirically established algorithm. Then, photography is performed when the photography criteria are satisfied. However, as the method does not recognize expressions or poses of people, there are cases in which people are photographed with expressions, or in poses different from those that they consider desirable for photography, when it is judged that the photography criteria are satisfied.